Spinning device



1 Feb. 27, 1968 M. MCKEW ET AL 3,370,410

SPINNING DEVICE Filed Jan. 29, 1965 INVENTORS Marshall McKew 8 5 ZeiusS. DeLong ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,370,410 SPINNING DEVICEMarshaii McKew, Wernersville, and Zelus S. DeLong,

Sinking Spring, Pa., assignors to Caron Spinning Company, Rochelle,111., a corporation of Illinois Filed Jan. 29, 1965, Ser. No. 429,052Claims. (Cl. 5712) The present invention relates generally to thetextile art, and, more particularly, to a yarn guide which is especiallysuited for use in the preparation of core-spun yarns.

Core spinning is rapidly becoming a very popular form of producingexpandible yarns which have the handle of natural yarns, contrary to thetype of expandible yarns which had been used previously in this field.There are also other drawbacks, in using the previous types ofexpandible yarns, which are eliminated by using the present type ofcore-spinning operations, wherein a monoor multi-filament core, whichmay be of an elastomeric nature, is utilized and is covered with what isreferred to as the sheath which may be a staple fiber, such as cotton,for example. The sheath covers the core yarn so that the final yarn hasthe handle of the sheath and is, for all practical purposes, notaffected by the core, while still retaining the desired extensibility.

In the manufacture of such core-spun yarns, a spandex yarn is usuallyused as a core. A roving is usually used as the sheath and thecombination of the two can be made, for example, on a slightly modifiedconventional spinning frame in which the roving passes through thedrafting system in the usual manner and the core yarn joins theconventionally drafted staple fiber at the front rolls. As they passthrough the nip of the front rolls, the sheath yarn is twisted and spunabout the core yarn.

One of the problems encountered in core spinning is that the spandexcore yarn which has a relatively high coefficient of friction remains inone place after it contacts the front rolls and, since the staple fiberwhich is being drafted through the drafting system can move to and frolaterally at the front rolls, there sometimes is a distance between thecore yarn and the staple fiber as it passes through the front rolls.This is undesirable since inter alia a loose wrapping of the sheathfiber about the core is likely to result. Therefore, in core spinningwhich has been performed heretofore, although it has been theoreticallypossilme to use a single roving, in practice, at least two rovings havealways been used so that the core yarn could be introduced between thetwo rovings to thereby act as a guide. However, it would be beneficialto be capable of spinning a suitable core-spun yarn using a singleroving since this reduces the creeling time and also permits the use ofa single heavier roving which provides for higher production in thoseoperations which precede the spinning operation.

Furthermore, in practice, the traverse mechanisms which have previouslybeen used to reduce wear throughout the drafting system, have beendisconnected because such traversing would move the staple fibers to andfro laterally through the drafting system and thus through the frontrolls, whereas the core yarn which has a high coefiicient of frictionwould remain in one place as it passes through the front rolls. Theeffect of this is that at times the two yarns will not be spaced asclosely together as is desired and also that the wear on the front rollsis much greater than is desirable.

With this in mind, it is a main object of the present invention toprovide a guide device which eliminates the above-mentioneddisadvantages of the prior art and allows core-spinning with a singleroving as well as permitting the use of the usual traverse mechanism.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a device whichguides the yarns and which is disposed in close proximity to the nip ofthe front rolls to thereby provide for accurate guiding of the yarnsinto this nip.

A further object of the invention is to provide a guide device of thecharacter described which is of relatively simple and inexpensiveconstruction and which does not disturb the normal functioning ofapparatus on which it is utilized.

An even further object of the present invention is to provide such aguide device which does not interfere with the threading of the yarnsthrough the device either initially or when the ends are broken so thatthe time required by the machine tender to perform the normal operationson the device is not lengthened by the use of the present invention.

These objects and others ancillary thereto are accomplished inaccordance with preferred embodiments of the invention wherein a guidedevice is constructed which is generally V-shaped, with one leg beinglonger than the other and with the two legs being curved to conform tothe curvature of the front rolls so that the apex of the V can approachthe nip of the front rolls. The upper leg of the V is provided with agroove for guiding the core yarn, whereas the lower leg of the V isprovided with a slot so that the staple yarn can pass therethrough witha minimum of contact with the guide. This slot through the lower legalso passes through the apex of the V-shaped guide so that the two yarnsmay run through this opening together. The guide is not attached to thedevice but merely sits adjacent the nip and is supported by the frontrolls. Any lateral movement of the yarns will also cause the guide tomove laterally.

Additionally objects and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent upon consideration of the following description when taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a schematic side view through the drafting system of aconventional spinning frame illustrating the feed for the core yarn andthe use of the present invention.

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of the guide forming the presentinvention and indicating in phantom lines how the yarns are guided bythe invention.

FIGURE 3 is a side elevational view of the guide of the presentinvention.

FIGURE 4 is a front elevational view of the guide.

FIGURE 5 is a top view of this guide.

The type of core yarns which may be utilized can take many forms but itis generally found that a spandex yarn is utilized and an example ofsuch a yarn, for example, is Lycra which is produced by Du Pont. Thesheath fiber is usually a staple fiber, such as cotton, or wool, and mayeven take the form of a synthetic staple.

With more particular reference to the drawings, FIG- URE 1 shows adrafting system generally indicated as 10 which includes a pair of backrolls 12, 12', a pair of intermediate aprons or belts 14, 14, and a pairof front rolls 16, 16', the lower of which may be fluted. A spool 18 ofroving 20 of a staple fiber is provided on a creel in the usual fashionand the end of roving 20 passes through a polished trumpet 22 which ismounted on a traverse bar 24. The package or spool of spandex 26 unwindsto provide the core yarn 28. This passes through some type of tensioningdevice which, in the example shown, comprises a grooved roller 30 whichis disposed forwardly of the front rolls 16, 16 and rotates in thedirection indicated.

The guide 32 forming the present invention guides the core yarn 28 and,at the same time, guides the ribbon of drafted fibers 20 which is fedfrom the aprons 14, 14' toward the front rolls 16, 16' and which ribbonis formed from the roving 20 of staple fiber.

The operation regarding the passage of the roving end through the deviceis normal in that the end 20 of roving is unwound from the spool 18 andpasses under a roving rod (not shown) and the end of roving then passesthrough a polished trumpet 22. The traverse bar 24 on which the trumpet22 is mounted slowly traverses laterally back and forth so that the endof roving 20 which enters the back rolls 12, 12' will not immediatelywear a groove in one spot in the rolls since the wear will bedistributed over a transverse length of the roll. This is also true forthe aprons 14, 14' and to a lesser extent to the front rolls 16 and 16'.

The linear speed of the aprons 14, 14 is slightly greater than that ofthe back rolls 12, '12 to provide an initial straightening and slighttensioning but with only a minimum draft provided. On the other hand,the linear speed of the front rolls 16, 16 is considerably greater thanthat of the aprons 14, 14 so that draft occurs between the nip of thefront rolls 16, 16' and the aprons which engage the roving. These apronsare provided with apron or 'belt bars 34 which are adjacent to eachother and are rounded in the front and may, if desired be of triangularform so as to provide a gentle gripping of the ribbon of fibers at apoint relatively close to the nip of the front rolls, and the beltpasses over these belt bars.

As the core yarn 28 is fed to the nip of the front rolls and as it has ahigh coefiicient of friction, this yarn more or less remains inengagement with the same portion of the front rolls, even though thetraverse mechanism is utilized to move the ribbon of staple fibers toand fro. Thus, in core-spinning which had heretofore been performed,many times there was a spacing between the core yarn and the sheathfibers during the spinning operation; to attempt to eliminate this thetraverse mechanism would be disconnected. However, even with thetraverse mechanism disconnected there is still a tendency for the ribbonof staple fibers to move slightly to and fro laterally as it passesthrough the front roll, Whereas there is little or no tendency for thecore yarn to do this, and thus the spacing between the two yarns wouldtake place to some extent even when the traverse mechanism was notutilized. Since the guiding means used previously could not approach thenip of the rolls and since such guide was stationary whereas there wasnevertheless a traverse bar provided, this natural tendency toward aspacing of the yarns from time to time could not be prevented.

However, the guide of the present invention, as shown in more detail inFIGURES 2 through 5, aids in preventing the spacing of the core andsheath yarns from one another at the nip of the front rolls. It can beseen that this guide 32 is generally V-shaped in that it has an apexportion and two legs which are relatively thin. The apex portion 36 israther thick and is generally triangular to provide a reinforced sectionalthough its apex 37 is rounded rather than sharp. The upper leg-38 isthe longer leg which narrows toward its upper end and, as can be seen,'it is curved so as to generally correspond to the diameter of the upperfront roll 16. The lower leg 40 is shorter but is also slightly curvedat least on its outer surface so as to conform to the contour of thelo'werfront roll 16. The lower leg 40 actually is composed of two arms41 and 42 which are defined due to a narrowing slot 44 which is formedcentrally through this leg 40. This slot also extends slightly upwardlyso as to also pass to some extent through the bottom portion of leg 38and this portion of the slot is indicated at 46 in the drawings. Agroove 48 is formed in the inner surface of the upper leg 38 which facesaway from the front rolls and thus in the convex surface of the leg. Theupper portion 50 of this groove is rather shallow and somewhat narrowerthan the lower portion 52 which is deeper and somewhat wider, and thisportion 52 leads gently into the beginning of the slot 46. The slot 46and the adjacent portion of slot 44 are formed by smoothly curvedsurfaces which curve gently from the surfaces shown in FIGURE 2 towardthe slots.

In use, the guide 32 is placed with the apex portion immediatelyadjacent the nip of the front rolls with the lower leg 40 restingagainst the lower front roll and the upper leg 38 resting on the upperfront roll. Because of the usual inclination of the drafting system 10,the guide merely sits here adjacent the nip of the rolls and issupported by the rolls so that no other support means need be provided.As the ribbon 20 of the staple fibers formed from the single roving 20emerges from the aprons 14, 14, it passes into the slot 44 of the guideand then through the lower portion of slot 46 so that it, in effect,passes directly to the nip of the front rolls. The core yarn 28 isinitially guided by the upper portion of groove 48 and is then guided bythe lower portion52 of this groove and eventually this core yarnpassesthrough the slot 46 together with the ribbon 20 of staple fibers so thatthe two yarns pass through the guide together and therefore enter thenip of the rolls spaced immediately adjacent or one on top of the otherwhich is as desired for proper core-spinning operations.

7 It should be noted that due to the high coeflicient of friction of thespandex core yarn 28 it passes through the guiding recess or groove 48to the slot 46 and should there be any movement of the guide, the coreyarn 28 will be properly guided since it will remain in the guidingrecess 48. Thus, for example, if the traverse mechanism is connected andthe ribbon of fibers 20' moves laterally to and fro, the guide 32 canalso move to and fro and despite this the two yarns are guided togetherthrough the device so that they pass into the nip of the front rollstogether. Furthermore, the guiding which does take place is immediatelyadjacent the nip of the front rolls. In the event of a broken thread,the guide does not adversely affect the mechanisrn at all, since itmerely rests in its proper position. When the drafting device 10 isstopped the guide 32 merely rests on the front rolls adjacent the nipthereof.

The guide can be made of any suitable material, and it has been foundthat a preferred form is produced when these guides are molded of anylon material, for example, when intended for use in a core yarn havinga high coefficient of friction, then a suitable lubricant may be addedto the nylon to prevent undue friction between the guide and core yarn.It has been found that .2.5% graphite is suitable, and /3 of 1% has beenused with good results.

Although the present invention provides an arrangeineht whereby onlyoneend of roving need be used, it can be used equally well with two ormore ends of rovmg.

It will be understood that the above description of the presentinvention is susceptible to Various modifications, changes, andadaptations, and the same are intended'to be comprehended within themeaning and range of equivalents of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A core-spinning device, comprising, in combination:

a drafting system with the fiber path inclined forwardly downwardly andincluding a set of front rolls providing a nip between them and with theupper front roll disposed forwardly of the lower front roll;

a system for feeding a roving to said drafting system;

a core yarn feeding system; and

freely movable guide means disposed immediately adjacent and behind thenip of the front rolls for positively guiding a drafted roving and acore yarn to gether at said guide means before they reach the nip of thefront rolls.

2. A device 'as defined in claim 1 wherein said guide means is looselyseated on said front rolls.

- 3. A core-spinning device, comprising, in combination;

a drafting system with the fiber pathinclined forwardly downwardly andincluding a set of front rolls providing a nip between them and with theupper front roll disposed forwardly of the lower front roll;

a system for feeding a roving to said drafting system;

a core yarn feeding system; and

guide means disposed immediately adjacent and behind the nip of thefront rolls for guiding a drafted roving and a core yarn together to thenip of the front rolls, said guide means being a generally V-shaped bodyhaving two relatively thin legs, one longer than the other, the outersurface of the longer leg being concave and conforming to the curvatureof the upper front roll, the inner surface of said longer leg having agroove defined therein centrally thereof for guiding a core yarn alongsaid inner surface, the outer surface of the shorter leg being concaveand conforming to the curvature of the lower front roll, the shorter leghaving a slot therein for guiding the drafted roving and the core yarntogether from the groove to the nip of the front rolls.

4. A guide comprising a generally V-shaped body having two relativelythin legs, one longer than the other, and a thickened triangular apexportion, the longer leg having a concave outer surface and a convexinner surface having a groove disposed centrally therealong, the shorterleg having a concave outer surface and said leg being divided into twoarms by a first slot extending for the length of this leg, 21 secondslot defined only through the portion of the longer leg adjacent theapex portion and also through the apex portion and in free communicationwith said first slot, said groove being directed into said second slot.

5. A guide as defined in claim 4 wherein said groove gradually becomeswider and deeper as it approaches said second slot.

6. A guide as defined in claim 4 wherein said first slot narrows as itapproaches said second slot.

7. A method of making a core-spun yarn comprising the steps:

drafting a single roving of staple fiber to form a ribbon and moving ittoward a nip;

feeding a spandex yarn toward said nip in a different direction thanthat in which the roving moves toward said nip;

positively bringing said ribbon and said yarn into contact at a point inadvance of a guiding zone and maintaining them in contact as they passthrough said Zone to said nip;

spinning said ribbon and said yarn; and

winding the spun yarn onto a package.

8. A method of making a corespun yarn comprising the steps:

drafting at least two rovings of staple fiber to form a ribbon andmoving it toward a nip;

feeding a spandex yarn toward said nip in a different direction thanthat in which the roving moves toward said nip;

positively bringing said ribbon and said yarn into contact at a point inadvance of a guiding Zone and maintaining them in contact as they passthrough said zone to said nip;

spinning said ribbon and said yarn; and

winding the spun yarn onto a package.

9 A device as defined in claim 3 wherein said body is made of a materialwhich includes a small amount of lubricant.

it A device as defined in claim 9 wherein said body is of nylon and thelubricant is graphite.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,358,656 9/1944 Nutter et ai57--36 X 3,020,697 2/1962 Henry 57-36 WiLLIAM S. BURDEN, PrimaryExaminer.

STANLEY GILREATH, Examiner.

1. A CORE-SPINNING DEVICE, COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION: A DRAFTING SYSTEMWITH THE FIBER PATH INCLINED FORWARDLY DOWNWARDLY AND INCLUDING A SET OFFRONT ROLLS PROVIDING A NIP BETWEEN THEM AND WITH THE UPPER FRONT ROLLDISPOSED FORWARDLY OF THE LOWER FRONT ROLL; A SYSTEM FOR FEEDING AROVING TO SAID DRAFTING SYSTEM; A CORE YARN FEEDING SYSTEM; AND FREELYMOVABLE GUIDE MEANS DISPOSED IMMEDIATELY ADJACENT AND BEHIND THE NIP OFTHE FRONT ROLLS FOR POSITIVELY GUIDING A DRAFTED ROVING AND A CORE YARNTO-